What a contest this has been — four gripping days of cricket in Mumbai. Day 1 was dominated by Karnataka, Day 2 saw Mumbai fight back strongly, Day 3 remained evenly poised and the decisive Day 4 once again belonged to Karnataka as they defeated Mumbai to book their place in the Semi Final of the Ranji Trophy 2025/26.
Karnataka will now face Uttarakhand in the first Semi Final, while Jammu & Kashmir will take on the winner of Quarter Final 3, which is likely to be Bengal. We will be back on Sunday, 15th February, for Day 1 of the Semi Finals. For now, you can switch tabs and follow the second match of the day in the T20 World Cup 2026, which begins shortly. It's time to take your leave. This is Pritam Dey signing off, along with my scorer Asraj Khan. BYE BYE👋
Devdutt Padikkal (Karnataka Captain): "(On facing Mumbai) Well, it's always a big game for us facing them. Winning the Ranji Trophy is not that easy as you need to face some tough sides. You will go through some tough challenges and I am glad that we are coming out on top.
Hopefully. We have to look at one game at a time. We are now looking forward to the Semi-Final now. Hopefully, we can put on a good show there and then take it from there.
(On chasing 325) We understood that it is not going to be easy because they have a really good bowling attack. It was challenging for us in the first innings. We believed that we had the batting line-up to get closer to the target. I am really happy that everyone stood up and contributed for the team.
(On Vidyadhar Patil's batting) Yeah, he has been really great for us throughout the season. Whenever we have needed him in whichever format of the game, he has delivered for the team."
KL Rahul (Player of the Match): "(On the target) Well, we wanted to get off to a good start. The wicket had some help for all types of bowlers. It was important for us to stay positive and try and put pressure on the opposition. That's what me and Mayank tried to do but Mayank unfortunately got out early but me and Devdutt did that later on. The chat was basically to try and put pressure on the bowlers. I think we did that pretty well. We stitched a few partnerships which helped us a lot. We lost a few quick wickets which got the heart rates going up towards the end but overall it was a really good game.
(On that partnership which Smaran) Yeah, he is a phenomenal player. He showed that last season as well. He improved in this game a lot more. He has scored more runs in this season. He has scored two double hundreds this season which shows the hunger he has. These are innings which pushes a player into bigger level and it will grab the eyeballs of the selectors. This innings will really help him as he did it under pressure. The wicket was not that easy to bat. The way he finished the match with Vidyadhar was just outstanding."
Player of the Match: KL Rahul
Shardul Thakur (Mumbai Captain): "We were trying to stay in the game. We were trying to put them under some pressure. The ball was turning and there was some extra bounce as well. It was not easy for a new batter to come out here and play their strokes. The discussion was to get a wicket of a set batter. Throughout the game we dropped a few chances which didn't help us but it was a wonderful season for us. I am proud of the boys. Akash, Mohit, Tushar showed up for the side throughout the season.
(On opting to bat first) On this venue we always look to bat first because it's not easy to bowl after the first hour with there being hardly any moisture. We were just 3 down in the first session and we could've scored a decent total from there on but we weren't expecting that odd bounce which we saw in the first innings. Usually over here the bounce is even but otherwise I feel the decision was correct. If we had held on our chances, we would've won the game."
2:15 PM IST & Local Time: That's it! What a sensational run chase from Karnataka. They have defeated Mumbai at their own den and sealed a famous victory. Karnataka march into the Semi-Final of the Ranji Trophy 2025/26 with a remarkable and composed performance under pressure.
It was a rollercoaster of a contest filled with dramatic collapses and gritty fightbacks from both sides. Day 1 completely belonged to Karnataka as their bowling attack, led superbly by Prasidh Krishna and Shreyas Gopal, ripped through the 42-time champions. Mumbai were bundled out for a meagre 120, with Akhil Herwadkar standing tall as the lone warrior, scoring 60 to account for exactly half of the team’s total. Karnataka then capped off a dominant day by finishing strongly at 110/2.
Day 2 saw a dramatic turnaround as Mumbai’s pacers hit back hard. Mohit Avasthi and Tushar Deshpande picked up 4 wickets each, triggering a stunning collapse as Karnataka lost their last 8 wickets for just 63 runs and were bowled out for 173. Despite the collapse, Karnataka still held a slender 53-run lead. Mumbai responded in style as openers Yashasvi Jaiswal and Akhil Herwadkar wiped off the deficit in quick time with a fluent 77-run stand to end the day in front.
Day 3 firmly swung Mumbai’s way as they first consolidated and then accelerated to put the game beyond reach. The morning session saw a brief wobble with the loss of Musheer Khan for 49 and Siddhesh Lad for 25, but Akash Anand’s composed 70 steadied the innings. A sensational lower-order counter-attack from Tushar Deshpande and Tanush Kotian powered Mumbai to a formidable second-innings total of 377, setting Karnataka a daunting target of 325. By stumps on Day 3, Karnataka were 113/2, keeping the contest finely poised.
Day 4 swung dramatically as the contest ebbed and flowed right till the end. Karnataka lost Karun Nair early in the morning, but KL Rahul found solid support in Smaran Ravichandran. The pair completely turned the game on its head with a massive 147-run partnership for the fourth wicket. Rahul went on to register a well-deserved century, while Smaran played the perfect supporting role as the duo wrested control from Mumbai.
Just when Karnataka seemed to be cruising with only 60 runs required, Mumbai struck back with three quick wickets in the post-lunch session to breathe life into the contest. However, Vidyadhar Patil (31* off 30) produced a gem of a cameo down the order, taking all the pressure off Smaran (83*). The pair calmly guided Karnataka over the line as they sealed a memorable 4-wicket win and booked their place in the Ranji Trophy 2025/26 Semi Final.